History of Lucha Libre and Mexican Professional Wrestling History of Lucha Libre The History of Lucha Libre is intertwined with the history of Mexico, mass media, and entertainment in general. Its following, both in Mexico and other countries, has made it the most popular sport after soccer in a country of 100 million people, and an integral part of pop culture. Early Beginnings In the early 1900’s, Mexico was in the middle of a Revolution against the current dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz. As with many times of war, the public looked for diversions to distract them from the every day realities of the fighting around them. Two Italian businessmen, Giovanni Reselevich y Antonio Fournier began promoting fights, in which opponents fought each other hand to hand, without weapons or protection. These fights were known as Lucha Libre, or ‘free fight’, and were notorious for their lack of regulations and violence inflicted upon the luchadores, or fighters.

While common belief is that this fighting style was originally introduced by the French during the invasion of 1863, it wasn’t until this time when Reselevich and Fournier where developing a cross-town rivalry between their respective promotion companies, that Lucha Libre began to develop large followings throughout many parts of the country. Father of Lucha Libre In 1929, Salvador Lutteroth González, was working in the United States where he began attending professional wrestling matches in El Paso, Texas. It was there that he became fascinated with the sport, especially the colorful personalities of the wrestlers, and decided to bring the sport to his home country of Mexico. In 1933, together with partner Francisco Ahumada, González founded the Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL) in Mexico City. After being turned down by larger arenas, the EMLL presented its first card in Arena Modelo, which had previously been scheduled for demolition, and had already been partially dismanteled.

Instead, the 5000 seat arena became the first home of modern Lucha Libre, and within a year, the EMLL was selling out events and looking for larger venues The EMLL, now called the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) is the longest running active professional promotion company in the world. Its current home is the 16,000 seat Arena Mexico in Mexico City, considered the Mecca of professional wrestling in Mexico. Enter Los Enmascarados The use of mascaras, or Lucha Libre masks, had been a part of Lucha Libre since its inception, however, it wasn’t popularized until the introduction of Santo, El Enmascarado de Plata, or “Saint, the Silver Masked Man”. Santo made his debut in summer 1942, and quickly captured the public’s fascination with his fighting ability and mysterious secret identity. Santo is clearly the greatest luchador of all time. Other contemporaries of great popularity include Blue Demon, Dr. Wagner, Solitario, Mil Máscaras, Rolando Vera, Anibal, Ray Mendoza, Rayo de Jalisco, and more.

Unique Aspects of Mexican Wrestling Lucha Libre Masks A popular part of a Mexican wrestler’s persona is his or her mascara, or lucha libre mask. The masks play an important part of the storyline, and can also provide some anonymity in a country enthralled by the sport of Mexican wrestling. Most all luchadores start their careers as masked wrestlers. They may even put their masks, and identities, on the line in a fight of Mask vs. Hair, or mascaras contra cabello, in which the loser loses his mask or gets his head shaved, depending on whether he wrestles with a mask or not. Lucha Libre Style of Wrestling Lucha Libre is also unique from professional wrestling promotions in the United States and Europe in that the wrestlers usually have smaller physiques and the wrestling moves are more aerial and high-flying, as opposed to the power moves popular in the US. The lighter weight division, or peso semicompleto, is the most popular in Mexico, and feature technical and acrobatic skills unparalleled in other countries. History of Mexico's Lucha Libre - San Carlos San Carlos Sea Side Mexico ›› San Carlos ›› History of Mexico’s Lucha Libre History of Mexico’s Lucha Libre Professional wrestling is not just an American sport.

The people of Mexico also enjoy wrestling as a professional sport and entertainment. Mexico’s “lucha libre” is rich in history, providing entertainment for crowds for more than 100 years. Anyone seeking to experience lucha libre in person should plan a Mexican vacation to one of the many hotels in the country. Immersing yourself in the Mexican culture can be a fascinating excursion. How it Began Lucha libre means “free fight,” which is an apt description of the sport. Wrestlers engage in hand-to-hand combat without using weapons or protection. Lucha libre made its debut in Mexico during the Mexican revolution that occurred during the early 1900s. The residents of Mexico needed a diversion to distract them from the political unrest that was enveloping their country. Two businessmen from Italy, Giovanni Reselevich and Antonio Fournier, began organizing and promoting matches between fighters. Salvador Lutteroth Gonzalez discovered a form of the sport being performed in El Paso, Texas, in 1929. He went to Mexico City and re-created the sport with a partner in 1933. The sport became popular, and a large arena is the current venue for fighting matches in Mexico City.

Masks Wrestlers engaging in fights wear masks. The use of masks has been a constant feature of lucha libre since its inception. The masks are a sacred part of the fighters’ identities. Initially, the masks were simple, with specific colors that identified each wrestler. Over time, masks have evolved to become more colorful and intricate. Fighters’ masks often feature designs with animals, heroes, and gods. In the beginning of wrestlers’ careers, they fight wearing masks. At some point, many wrestlers will become unmasked, and they will fight from that point on without wearing masks. Some fighters wait until a final tour before retirement to unmask themselves. Similarities and Differences to American Pro Wrestling Mexican and American professional wrestling has both similarities and differences. Wrestling in both countries involves battles to win championship titles. Lucha libre fighters are separated into highly specific weight classes, as opposed to a slightly less specific weight class division in America. Both Mexican and American pro wrestlers have popular personas, usually followed energetically by adoring fans. Mexican wrestlers may have some anonymity due to their masks, whereas most American wrestlers compete without masks that hide their identity. Lucha libre fighters are usually smaller in stature than American wrestlers.

Lucha libre fighting moves orchestrated in the ring tend to be more airborne, while American wrestlers focus their moves on delivering more power to their opponents. With their smaller body size, Mexican wrestlers usually show a higher level of acrobatic skill when compared to American wrestlers. Famous Wrestlers A number of wrestlers have fought their way into lucha libre history in Mexico. These luchadores may fight individually, or they could engage in tag-team matches. Luchadores split into two different categories: those who fight by the rules and those who do not. The “rudos” are the bad guys who specialize in breaking rules whenever they can. The “tecnicos” are the good guys who follow the rules, yet deliver complex moves to try to subdue their opponents. The luchadore “Místico” incited excitement among his Mexican followers as he fought his way to the top in 2006. Rey Mysterio Jr. has been a popular fighter since the 1990s, and he also earned fame in America by wrestling with the WWE. Gory Guerrero was a legendary fighter who did not wear a mask. Karloff Lagarde was a legendary rudo with an impressive history of successful matches and title reigns.

Although advancing in age, Mil Mascaras remains active in the ring. During his prime, he impressed audiences with aerial maneuvers in the ring. In fact, he was the first fighter to use common moves such as the “tope suicida” and the “plancha.” Lucha libre: Mexican wrestling arrives in Britain - Telegraph How about that? Lucha libre: Mexican wrestling arrives in Britain Lucha libre – Mexican wrestling – has arrived in Britain, promising crowds the tantalising spectacle of a midget taking on a cross dressing man. By Jon Swaine 10:15AM GMT 05 Dec 2008 Masked men will go through choreographed fight routines in front of thousands of howling supporters as the sport, which is the second most popular in Mexico after football, takes to the London stage. For four nights from Saturday – and a Sunday matinee for children – a 16-strong troupe including a transvestite who fights a midget in a wolverine mask will perform at the Camden Roundhouse in north London. Its proponents hope the sport can reach the heights of popularity enjoyed in Britain by the US form of the sport, World Wrestling Entertainment, which regularly sells out large arenas when it tours the country.

The star attraction of the group, El Hijo del Santo, is the son of the sport's most famous wrestler, Santo, who died in 1984. He told The Independent: "For me lucha libre is something that has no boundaries and can easily cross language barriers or different cultures. The British public are a great audience, they become very passionate and I like that." Cassandro, the transvestite, told the newspaper: "Lucha libre is like a religion in Mexico. When I was a child, my family and I would go to church on a Sunday morning and then head down to the nearest ring. The wrestlers were our heroes." Lucha libre wrestlers are known as luchadores. The "good" characters, who follow the rules, are tecnicos, while the villains, who resort to underhand tactics like using weapons in the ring, are rudos. The sport's glamorous style originated in the 1940s when wrestlers began donning the distinctive masks. It was satirised in the 2006 film Nacho Libre, starring Jack Black.

Lucha Libre - The Grindhouse Cinema Database Lucha Libre @ WIKIPEDIA • EL SANTO @ IMDB • SANTO & FRIENDS Introduction Mexican wrestling, or Lucha Libre movies form a peculiar and unique cinematic genre. With their combination of masked super-heroes & secret agents, monsters & mad scientists, bouts of frantic man-on-man grappling & Saturday morning serial style criminal capering they have no immediate cousins anywhere else in the world. Wrestling had been a popular spectator sport in Mexico since the early 1930s before appearing on cinema screens in the ‘50s. Masked combatants were divided into 2 camps: ‘tecnicos’ (the good guys) & ‘rudos’ (the bad guys) and their dramatic conflicts owed as much to pantomime theatricality as they did to athletic prowess and sportsmanship (although I wouldn’t say that to their faces). The colourful masks provided larger than life identities for the heroes (yay!) and villains (boo!) and a particularly terrible defeat would climax with the loser unmasked and humiliated.

On a purely functional level by keeping their faces covered performers could be defeated in one incarnation only to return to the ring as a new character the next week without too much fuss. The Lucha Libre film genre effectively commenced in 1952 with the release of El Enmascarado De Plata (The Man In The Silver Mask), the lead character based on a popular masked wrestler named El Santo (The Saint). Although El Santo himself would soon embark on a 4 decade spanning film career on this occasion another wrestler played the eponymous role. The early Lucha Libre films usually pit their masked heroes against gangsters, crooks or kidnappers but slowly science-fiction and fantasy elements crept in to the stories giving the protagonists more other-worldly opponents to grapple with. The emergence of an indigenous horror genre in Mexico in the late 1950’s, starting with films such as ‘The Vampire’ (1957) & ‘The Man & The Monster’ (1958), had a strong influence on the Mexican wrestling movie. Soon Dracula, the Wolfman, Frankenstein, Zombies and even a few Martians were all invading the wrestling ring.

As threatening as these noticeably foreign intruders may have appeared none were able to defy the headlocks and body-slams of Mexico’s tight-wearing national heroes. El Santo - King Of The Ring Rodolfo Guzman Huerta was born in 1917 and began his wrestling career aged 16. Between 1935 & 1942 he adopted a number of ‘rudo’ guises including Hombre Rojo (Red Man) and Demonio Negro (Black Demon). In 1942 he adopted the now familiar silver mask of El Santo however despite his new ‘saintly’ moniker Huerta continued to essay the role of ‘rudo’ in the ring. It was the success of his own comic book series and early film appearances, wherein he fought for truth, justice and the Mexican way, that El Santo deserted the dark side and became the wholesome hero we know and love today.

Having turned down the opportunity to appear in 1952’s El Enmascarado De Plata El Santo made his screen debut with supporting roles in 2 crime capers shot in Cuba in 1958: Santo Contra El Cerebro Del Mal(aka Santo Vs The Evil Brain ) & Santo Contra Hombres Infernales (aka Santo Vs The Infernal Men ). The first of El Santo’s films to include scenes of the hero involved in actual wrestling matches was ‘Santo Contra Los Zombies’ (aka Santo Vs The Zombies ) and the format of the films would soon settle into a popular pattern: El Santo gets called away from his wrestling career to help the police/a professor friend/a shapely young chica to solve a mystery/recover a stolen invention or valuable artefact/rescue a kidnapped relative from a nefarious fiend periodically returning to the ring to fulfil any professional engagements. Only 4 of El Santo’s 50-something film appearances were dubbed into English for distribution abroad but one of the most popular proved to be 1962’s Santo Vs.

Las Mujeres Vampiro (aka Santo Vs The Vampire Women ) however in the English language dialogue prepared by K.Gordon Murray El Santo was re-branded Samson. More than anyone else Murray was responsible for exposing non-Spanish speaking audiences to the weird and wonderful world of Mexploitation in the 1960s with his re-packaged versions of ‘The Vampire’s Coffin’ & ‘The Curse Of Nostradamus’ among other delights. By this time El Santo was a household name in his country of origin and, low budgets and recycled plots not with standing, his film adventures would continue into the 1980s. 1966 significantly saw the first El Santo film shot in color; the James Bond-esque Santo In Operation 67 , and 1974 saw the man in the silver mask face off against Mexican folklore’s popular horror movie monster La Llorona in Santo In The Vengeance Of The Crying Woman (aka ‘Santo En La Venganza De La Llorona’). On some occasions when a task was too treacherous for one wrestling superhero a tag-team partner or two would be called upon to lend a fist.

Throughout the 1970s El Santo would regularly team-up with partner-in-crime-fighting Blue Demon for such momentous adventures as Santo And Blue Demon In The World Of The Dead and Santo And Blue Demon Vs Dracula And The Wolf Man . El Santo’s last film appearance was in 1982’s ‘Santo En La Furia De Los Karatecas’ (aka Santo In The Fury Of The Karate Experts ) alongside the youngest of his 10 children Jorge who rather inevitably adopted the name El Hijo Del Santo (The Son Of Santo). Rodolfo Guzman Huerta died in 1984 of a heart attack and was buried wearing the iconic silver mask of his legendary alter ego. More Heroes & Heroines Other notable Mexican wrestling movie stars include the aforementioned Blue Demon who as well as his appearances alongside El Santo also pounded the mat in his own adventures including ‘Blue Demon Vs The Demonic Power’ & ‘Blue Demon Vs The Diabolical Women’.

Joining El Santo and Blue Demon in their efforts to solve 1977’s ‘Misterio En Las Bermudas’ (aka Santo In The Bermuda Mystery ) and unravel 1970’s ‘Momias De Guanajuato’ (aka Santo In The Mummies Of Guanajuato ) was Mil Mascaras so named because he was the owner of a thousand different masks. Mil Mascaras & Blue Demon also formed part of a wrestling super-hero team dedicated to ridding the world of rudos called Las Campeones Justicieros (‘The Champions Of Justice’). Not to be outdone by the dudes when it came to pulling on the tights Las Luchadoras were a troop of wrestling ladies who appeared in 6 films between 1962 and 1968 dispensing their own brand of feminine justice to various villains. Highlights of the series include ‘Las Luchadoras Vs El Medico Asesino’ and ‘Las Luchadoras Contra La Momia’ both of which were given English language makeovers by K.Gordon Murray becoming ‘Doctor Of Doom’ and Wrestling Women Vs The Aztec Mummy respectively. Images Narcan is the GCDb's esteemed UK contributor.

As a youth his earliest exploitation film experience was a My Bloody Valentine/The Funhouse midnight double bill. Grindhouse icons that he holds in highest regards are Christina Lindberg and Frank Henelotter. Two of his favorite exploitation genres include Nunsploitation and Lucha Libre. Luche Libre History & Cartoon Fun from Brownielocks Brownielocks and The 3 Bears present Cartoon Fun and Lucha Libre means "free fighting" when translated into English. Although, today, it is referred to as professional wrestling in Mexico, when the sport began back in 1933, the wrestlers all held day jobs and wrestled at night incognito. Luchadores are Lucha Libre wrestlers who are just real people that no one sees without their masks. Their identities are known only to those closest to them. The singular (or one performer) is called a luchador. The sport of wrestling originates back to 3400 BC in ancient Egypt, when it was used as a past time event. Wrestling then migrated into Europe, where the ancient Greeks had wrestling competitions in the Olympics. Soon, it became more of a military exercise than past time.

Wrestling, in Mexico, was more of a form of theatre rather than a sport competition, with the theme being Good vs. Evil. Luche Libre is the brainchild of Salvador (aka Don Chava) Lutteroth Gonzalez, a furniture salesman. What once was a mere sideshow, under Don Chava now became a real sensationalized spectacle! First, he started out promoting wrestling cards in La Arena Mexico, a historical and important Mexican arena at that time. Then, in 1933, he rented the Arena Modelo in Mexico City's Colonia Doctores area and started boxing matches with local athletes, that got little crowds. Hmm? So, he got the idea to import some American wrestlers to play. He signed up Ray Ryan from the US and suddenly business picked up. Hoping to promote Mexican wrestlers, he started to include locals among the foreign athletes. And, he wanted to create some personas for the Mexican wrestlers, like the Americans had. He also wanted to build a new arena for all of this. So, he bulldozed down an old convent and built the Arena Coliseo, which was inaugurated on April 2, 1943.

By the time the arena had it's 10th anniversary, Mexico City needed a new ring. So, Don Salvador pledged to build the world's biggest wrestling arena. He tore down the Arena Modelo and built Arena Mexico, which would be for many sports, including an ice-skating rink. Luche Libre isn't just a wrestling match. It's a fight between Good vs. Evil, where the athletes create characters, wear colorful costumes and masks. The Bad Guys are "los rudos", and their motto is to win at any cost. Thus cheating for them is common. These guys are booed a lot. The good guys are called "Los Tï¿½cnicos" and they never cheat to win. They get cheered a lot. It's a form of athletic theatre. Since it's origin, there have been some very famous characters: The White Angel, The Red Angel, The Blue Devil , The Silver Mask and Dizzy Gardenia, who gave flowers to the women in the audience before his matches, to name a few. Mexican wrestling is where those high-flying moves originated. This helped add to the drama of the sport, and is probably the reason why Mexico is the country where Lucha Libre is the most popular.

But, there are rules to the sport that must be followed. They are similar to American wrestling rules, where matches are won by 1. Pinning your opponent down on the mat for 3 counts 2. Making your opponent submit 3. Knocking him out of the ring for 20 counts 4. Disqualification (i.e. doing the martinete = hitting in the groin, attacking the ref, ripping off your opponents mask, etc.) It's also illegal to use the rope to help hold yourself up. If a wrestler is doing this, then the opponent has to let go of him and can't try for a pin down. Most matches are 3 rounds. And, not resting between the rounds will force the referee to call "excessive violence" and reverse the fall's decision. Most matches are 2 out of 3. They also have tag teams in Luche Libre. I won't go into those rules to avoid becoming too wordy. You can look them up on wrestling sites if interested. ;) The masks are to help create the character that you are. The first Lucha Libre wrestler to ever wear a mask was El Murcielagao (The Bat) Velasquez.

Salvador Lutteroth Gonzales, the originator, decided to put a black mask with cut-out eyes, and a black cape on him for more of a spectacular effect. In the beginning the masks were pretty simple. Today, they're much more detailed and colorful. The focus of the mask is to portray an animal, god, devils, heroes, or some other type of hero or villain - folklore or modern. All luchadores usually begin with a mask. But, by the time their career is over, they will end up being unmasked! While being a luchador, many of them will wear their masks in public. Thus, they become one with their character even when not in the ring. Mexico's most famous, "El Santo (The Saint)" was buried with his. More on him below. They have competitions in which the loser has his mask taken off by the winner and reveals his name to everyone. This match is called "Mï¿½scara contra Mï¿½scara" or Mask Vs. Mask. The longer a luchador can keep from being unmasked, and the more times he defends it, the higher his status.

Another competition is called "Mï¿½scara conra Cabellera" or Mask Vs. Hair. This is where one masked luchero fights one unmasked luchero. If the masked luchero wins, then the unmasked one has to shave his head. If the unmasked luchero wins, then he keeps his hair and gets to unmask his opponent! "Cï¿½bellera contra Cï¿½bellera" is Hair Vs. Hair where two unmasked lucheros with hair compete. The loser gets his head shaved. These hair matches are usually done at the end of the luchero's career as their final defeat. Besides getting a bonus for losing their hair (by the promoter) well...think about it. If the luchero's identity is suppose to be a secret, then what happens if one day he suddenly shows up at work (or home) with a shaved head? Doesn't that sort of give them away? ;) The first shaved-head bet match was on July 14, 1940 in the Arena Mexico. The luchadores were Octavio Gaona (ex-middle weight world champion) vs. Murciï¿½lago.

Now, Murciï¿½lago knew that Octavio was bigger and heavier. So, he said that if he won, then Gaona had to shave his head. Although Gaona won, Murciï¿½lago only lost his mask (as I mentioned up above) and didn't have to shave his head. But, this bet is the origin for all future head-shaving contests. It's just ironic that the first match that had head-shaving as the punishment didn't have any head shaved. Ha! Yes, there are women lucharos. Or is that lucharas? ;) The first female was from the United States named Vicky Williams. Upset that this title was held by a non-Mexcian woman, Estela Molina defeated Vicky on December 23, 1979. While Vicky was lying on the mat, Estala screamed, "Get up you miserable piece of imported trash!" to the shock of everyone. In the beginning, women were also not allowed to wrestle in the same arenas as the men did. This match between Vicky and Estela was held somewhere else.

The next year, Vicky Williams defeated Estela Molina on October 5, 1980. Vicky was then defeated the following year by Chabela Romero on December 21, 1980. And so the list goes on with other champions as Lola Gonzalez, Irma Gonzalez, Irma Aguilar, Pantera Surena, Jaguar Yokota, etc. Luche Libre isn't just for big, tall, thick, chunky muscular guys. In 1952, midget luchadores arrived in Mexico from the US. But, it took about 20 years before the press really took notice of the midget wrestlers. The popularity of the midget wresters is said to be due to a movie called, "Los Vampiros de Coyoacï¿½n" in 1972. The movie needed 4 midget stuntmen to be dressed as bats to be assistants to El Vampiro, the main villian. Also on the set of this film was Cï¿½sar Valentino. Although he was just an extra, he was also a luchador!

He saw how easily the little midget stuntmen caught on to things and decided that they could be trained to fight as luchadores. The midgets, who were tired of the fickle financial life that movies provided, took him up on his offer to go to Mexico and wrestle. Their popularity grew. And at their height, they got talked into becoming the mini-versions of the larger-sized popular luchadores. So, Mascara Sagrada turned into Mï¿½scarita Sagrada, in this Lilliput Division of Lucha Libre. Although I said that Lucha Libre is a form of athletic theatre, they do have a goal, which is to be the Champion (Campeonato) Luchador! This is done by winning a series of matches, each within their different weight classes: Heavyweight, Light-weight, Middleweight and Welterweight. Unlike American wrestling, the most elite titles of Campeonato Luchador is within the light-weight class. Lucha Libre also has a weight class called Cruiserweight, which originates from boxing and is sort of between Heavy and Light weights. Maybe because most luchadores are not all professionals, but hold other daytime jobs, the sport offers a variety of weights?

There are also championship titles for tag teams of two or three wrestlers. Champions usually defend their titles about once a year. And, just like American wrestlers they have belts to show their status. The belts are usually worn only when they are defending their titles at big match events, however. As far as the women Luche Libre wrestlers, well they get a coronation pageant! For example, on December 14, 1980 Selene I was crowed "Queen of Lucha Libre 1981." All the Mexican wrestling superstars attended, and it was quit a glitzy event. The queen doesn't have to do wrestling matches to get her crown. In Selene's case, a jury of 44 of Luche Libre's elite voted for the queen. Selene got 16 votes making her the winner. The runner up was Lisa de Liz, who got 14 votes. The queens also have sponsors. Luche Libre has millions of fans. But the one that is the most memorable is Dona Virginia Aguilera. She is considered the sports number uno fan and is called The Grandmother of Lucha Libre.

The first match she saw was in 1934 at the Arena Roma-Mï¿½rida between El Caballo Bayo and El Santo (at that time was using a different name btw.) For fifty years, she never missed a game! On March 18, 1980 she was given a plaque recognizing her sport loyalty and devotion. On August 24, 1984, she was honored in person, in the Arena Mexico for her remarkable half-century unbroken attendance record! Dona would climb into the ring, and with her umbrella whack the rudos who were fighting her loved cientï¿½ficos. Her greatest love was, El Santo (The Saint) . After him came, El Perro Agueyo, whose poster she kissed daily. But her most prized trophies from her love of Luche Libre were actual locks of hair from the cabelleros and signed masks (often bloody that she'd clean later when she got home) of the luchadores. At 4:00 am on May 10, 1997, Dona died at the age of 97. She loved Luche Libre till the very end of her life.

Since Luche Libre began, there have been a lot of popular and famous luchadores. Men from all walks of life have become a luchador. "El Apolo De ï¿½bano" in real life was Pastor Dorrel Dixon, who was a luchador for 30 years. He said that he loved both having spiritual, mental and physical strength. "Fray Tormenta" in real life was really Father Sergio, who founded a home for 50 orphans. He fought for the money to help his kids. And, ended up earning enough to help house 3,000 orphans and street kids. His masked was golden with red lightning bolts. For years, no one knew his identity. But, there are two luchadores that go down in history: The Blue Demon and El Santo (The Saint). The luchador known as "El Santo" started July 26, 1942. His career lasted 51 years. During that time, he defeated many opponents. And, no one knew his real name until the very end.

He was simply "The Man in the Silver Mask" or "El Santo." Imagine having your identity kept a secret for 51 years! I doubt today, that the paparazzi would never let him keep his secret. After 9 yrs. of wrestling, El Santo had a comic book series in honor of him. Then, 7 yrs. later he had movies, such as "Santo contra El Cerebro del Mal" (Santo versus The Evil Brain) and "Santo contra Los Internales" (Santo versus The Infernal Men), which were just the beginning of his movie star career that created 54 movies! This elevated El Santo to enormous popularity in Mexico. In all of these films, his fans saw El Santo fight against evil and win. El Santos movies not only popularized Lucha Libre, but helped Mexican cinema as well. In 1984, doctors told El Santo that he had an incurable and severe heart condition that could not be treated. Knowing that his time had come to an end, El Santo did a live television interview where after 51 years, he finally took off his mask and revealed to everyone who he really was! A few days later, he died of a heart attack.

He was buried with his silver mask on. So who was he? El Santa's real name was Rodolfo Guzman Huerta. He was born September 23, 1917 in Tulancingo, Hidalgo. He was the 5th child of 7 in his family. Because his mother was very ill, the family moved to Mexico City when he was 6 yrs. old. He showed athletic skills in baseball and football (US style not soccer). For a short time he studied art at the Academia de San Carlos. Due to financial problems, he decided to go into luche libre like his older brothers: Jesï¿½s was known as "Pantera Negra", and died in the ring. Miquel was known as "Black Guzman" and became a world middleweight champion. Javier, was simply known as "Jimmy" in the ring. Rodolfo wasn't in shape to suddenly become a luchador like his brothers. So, while working in a stockings factory, he decided to learn jiu-jitsu.

When he first fought, he used the name "Rudy Guzman." In 1936 he joined Salvador Lutteroth Gonzï¿½lez's EMLL in 1936. After doing this, he changed his name to "Murciï¿½lago II." He got sued over that name by another luchador who already had a bat theme. So, Salvador came up with the image that would change Rodolfo's life: "El Santo" and he'd wear a silver mask. On July 26, 1942 Rodolfo Guzman Huerta stepped into the Arena Mexico and made his debut as "El Santo!" He would kneel and pray in the corner before every game. This was a bit ironic, because he was a rudos (aka bad guy) in the ring! The luchador known as "The Blue Demon" (or Blue Devil) wore a blue mask with white and silver streaks around his face, and blue tights. How did it all begin for him? While working as a railroad night shift brakeman, he met a man that would change his life! Rolando Vera, taught "The Blue Demon" how to wrestle.

He is also the one who created his look. Then, on March 31, 1948 in Laredo, Texas "The Blue Demon" stepped into the ring and defeated "Chema Lopez" in just three falls. Thus began a career that went a little over 40 years. During that time, "The Blue Demon" was "El Santo's " greatest rival. Their rivalry started in a mask vs. mask fight on November 7, 1952. When El Santo won the first fight, he attempted to de-mask The Black Shadow (in real life a railroad co-worker and friend of The Blue Demon) next. So, the Blue Demon stepped into the ring to help his friend out and ended up throwing El Santo out of the ring in the process! The crowd loved it and The Blue Demon suddenly became a los tï¿½nicos, or good guy. The Blue Demon and El Santo would meet two times more. He retired from the ring in July, 1989 after 41 years. The Blue Demon and El Santo had similarities. The Blue Demon also had a movie. And, he also died of a heart attack.

On December 16, 2000, the man born as Alejandro Muï¿½oz on April 24, 1922 on a ranch somewhere in the Mexican state of Nuevo Leï¿½n died at the age of 78. For his entire career, no one knew his real identity except his family. Not only did the wrestling style of "high flying" seep into American wrestling venues, so did the lavish costumes and promotions. But, other lucha libre influences I feel have snuck in as well, only a little more subtle. As I mentioned above, the midgets would become smaller versions of the famous large-size luchadores. I wonder if the writers of "Austin Powers" used this as a source for the character of Mini-Me? And, Dona Virginia Aguilera, who climbed into the ring hitting the rudos with her umbrella, reminds me of Lilly Tomlin's character on "Laugh-In" back in the 60's. Just recently, movie star, Jack Black, has made a comedy called "Nacho Libre" in which there's a lot of similarity to the real luchador, Fray Tormenta as I mentioned above.

And, for children there is a cartoon series called, " ï¿½Mucha Lucha!" Source of Information: "Lucha Libre: The Man in The Silver Mask" by Xavier Garza Cinco Puntos Press ï¿½ 2005 "Lucha Libre - Masked Superstars of Mexian Wrestling" by Alfonso Morales Carrillo and Lourdes Grobet Distributed Art Publishers, Inc. ï¿½ 2005 Like this background? Get one for your site! All graphics on this site (still and animated) have our embedded watermark. They are not public domain! All contents (Graphics and Text) are covered by U.S. Copyright Laws. No reproduction of any kind, downloading, copy, paste, save, etc. is allowed. All rights reserved! Like Brownielocks on Facebook Thanks for Visiting. We love you! 3/28: Mexico's lucha libre wrestling takes on U.S. foe: WWE 3/28: Mexico's lucha libre wrestling takes on U.S. foe: WWE by Chris Hawley - Jan.

17, 2010 12:00 AM Republic Mexico City Bureau MEXICO CITY - It was fight night, and the souvenir vendors were out in force around Arena Mexico, mecca for the Mexican style of pro wrestling known as lucha libre. There were satin lucha libre masks for sale, posters of such Mexican legends as Blue Demon and el Santo, and action figures of such current Mexican wrestlers as M�stico. But 5-year-old Jorge Rodr�guez had his eye on a T-shirt featuring Jeff Hardy, an American and former star from World Wrestling Entertainment, the U.S. league. "I like them better. I'm going to have a WWE birthday party!" he gushed. In a country that's intensely proud of its wrestling tradition, the WWE is making an unprecedented push to win over Mexican fans, signing new television contracts, striking merchandising deals, launching a magazine and bringing its muscle-bound stars south of the border for live events. "We've been working quite diligently (in Mexico) over the last couple of years," said Andrew Whitaker, executive vice president of WWE International.

"It's a sea change in our brands and story lines." Fans say the WWE's style, with lots of dialogue and soap opera-style plots, is gaining in popularity over the masked, mostly silent, intensely acrobatic lucha libre, which is Spanish for "free fighting." Wrestling fans south of the border may take advantage of WWE's biggest annual event, which will hit Arizona this spring. Wrestlemania, which is the dramatic culmination of the year's story lines, is expected to fill University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale with more than 60,000 fans in March. WWE's success in Mexico and other foreign markets helped the company post a 2 percent gain in third-quarter revenue last year, compared with the same period the previous year, despite a tough economy. But it has also created a glut of wrestling on Mexican TV that has combined with Mexico's still-serious recession to eat into ticket sales, said Salomon Duarte, a writer for Mexico's Boxing and Wrestling magazine. Joaquin Rold�n, chief executive of the Mexican wrestling company known as AAA, said his company, formally known as Assistance, Consulting and Administration Inc., has seen ticket sales fall 20 to 30 percent.

AAA's main Mexican competitor, the World Council of Lucha Libre, or CMLL, declined to speak to The Arizona Republic. But at some recent CMLL events, more than three-quarters of the seats were empty. "It's a real invasion," fan Carlos L�pez said as he looked over WWE action figures for sale outside Arena Mexico. "They're out to kill off lucha libre." Whitaker said the WWE has no intentions of killing lucha libre. But in the past two years, WWE seems to be everywhere in Mexico, from the sides of buses in Mexico City to bags of potato chips. WWE has signed new deals putting its weekly shows on both of Mexico's television networks, as well as several cable providers. A chain of movie theaters shows WWE matches live. In 2009, the company opened a Mexico City office and held 12 live events in Mexico, up from two in 2004. Unique art form Inside Arena Mexico, the battle between Guerrero Maya and Escorpi�n had exploded out of the ring and into the front row of seats. Guerrero Maya sailed over the ropes, locked his legs around the neck of Escorpi�n and spun in midair.

His opponent did a forward flip and crashed to the floor, inches from the spectators. The acrobatics, masked heroes and a general lack of chatter are the main trademarks of lucha libre, said Heather Levi, a Temple University anthropologist and author of a book about the sport. Both WWE and lucha libre feature "good guy" and "bad guy" characters acting out simulated violence. But the similarities don't go much further. (Lucha libre is) "much more active than American wrestling," Levi said. "In U.S. wrestling, they talk for 10 minutes and wrestle for one. In lucha libre, it's very intense athletics for 20 or 30 minutes." Pro wrestling in Mexico dates to 1933, when a promoter brought four wrestlers from the United States for an exhibition match, Levi said. The shows quickly became a popular attraction in poor neighborhoods. Most wrestlers held day jobs, so they wore masks and kept their identities secret. Lucha libre has since become a fixture of Mexican culture, with wrestlers appearing in art, political campaigns and dozens of B movies. Growing competition WWE has offered pay-per-view events in Mexico since the 1990s.

But income from those events has soared since the weekly shows debuted on Mexico's broadcast networks, Donna Goldsmith, WWE's chief operating officer, told analysts in a conference call in November. Mexicans also are flocking to WWE's live events, shelling out $19 to $150. The turnout helped drive average attendance at WWE's foreign events up 38 percent this year, from 6,600 to 9,100. Although Mexican fans are willing to pay to see U.S. stars once or twice a year, Duarte said, they're cutting back on weekly lucha libre events. He blamed an oversupply of televised wrestling: Along with the WWE's two weekly programs, CMLL matches air twice a week and AAA matches once a week. "There's wrestling on television practically all week," Duarte said. "People say, 'Why should I pay for a ticket when I can watch it at home?' " The WWE competition is already having an effect on Mexican stars, Duarte said. There has been a move toward bigger, more muscular stars, and the AAA has been experimenting with better-developed WWE-style plots for its events.

Outside Arena Mexico, T-shirt vendor Jaime Rojas said WWE merchandise accounts for 30 percent of his sales, up from 2 or 3 percent five years ago. "The kids really like the WWE," he said, as little Jorge and his mother disappeared into the night with a Jeff Hardy T-shirt. Lucha Underground and the Lucha Legends That Still Matter Today | Den of Geek Lucha Underground and the Lucha Legends That Still Matter Today Lucha Underground is a loving homage to the greatest lucha legends in history. tumblr Since last 2014, the El Rey Network has been airing a lucha libre show called Lucha Underground. Not only is it a fun, insane wrestling show, it introduces the lucha libre tradition to American audiences who might not be familiar with this high-flying form of wrestling. You have young guys like former Lucha Underground Champion Prince Puma, who would jump off of almost anything and risk it all in and out the ring, and veterans such as Mascarita Sagrada, who wrestles in the mini division back in Mexico but can still lay the beat down on his opponents.

If you're familiar with American wrestling promotions such as the WWE and the late WCW, then you've probably heard names like Konnan and Chavo Guerrero Jr. They're in Lucha Underground, too. The very first televised match of LU featured Chavo and Blue Demon Jr., the son of one the biggest lucha libre legends of all time. The fact that you can tune in on Wednesday nights to watch masked men with ridiculous storylines (Mil Muertes, one of the bad guys, is the sole survivor of a 1989 earthquake in Mexico City) clash against each other like almighty titans is a very big deal for people like myself, who grew up watching AAA and CMLL matches on Sunday afternoons with Dad. Sure, I spent a lot of time watching what was then the WWF and WCW shows, but it was the style of these luchadores and the gusto with which they performed their signature moves that kept me coming back to the Mexican tradition. I haven't been a big fan of wrestling for a while. Personally, I find the current WWE a bit stale and tired, and I don't get to sit down and watch AAA matches all that often anymore.

But I have watched a ton of Lucha Underground, and all I can say is that it's definitely worth checking out. Yes, the storylines are more than a bit silly and some of the characters aren't very interesting (looking at you, Mariachi Loco, lord of stereotypes), but the action is non-stop. Lucha Underground is really worth the watch. Just check out this match between Prince Puma and former WWE star Johnny Mundo: Now that lucha libre is making its way back into American television, it's a pretty appropriate time, especially since Blue Demon Jr. is in the mix, to look back at the three legends of lucha libre. EL SANTO Years Active: 1934-1982 We have to start with the big man. El Santo really doesn't need much of an introduction if you're at least a tiny bit familiar with lucha. He is by far the greatest wrestler to step into a ring in Mexico. Wrestling as a tecnico (the good guy), he also wrestled under the names Rudy Guzman (his real name), El Hombre Rojo, and El Demonio Negro.

His biggest achievement was undoubtedly his undefeated record in luchas de apuesta, matches in which the loser would be unmasked or have his hair shaved off. You can only imagine what a big deal these matches are. Most luchadores wear masks, and being stripped of them is like being stripped of their identities. You'll find that most masked wrestlers wear their masks in and out of the ring to protect their identities. Luckily, El Santo never lost his mask and the legend lived on. So big was Santo fever back in the 1950s and 60s that El Enmascarado de Plata (as he was lovingly known in his home country) that he became movie star, featuring in many of the biggest wrestling pictures ever made for Latin American audiences. He was in 54 films total. Famous films include 1961's Santo vs The Zombies, 66's Santo vs The Martian Invasion, 69's Santo vs Blue Demon in Atlantis, which co-starred another lucha great in a sci-fi adventure. His greatest and most famous film is 62's Santo vs The Vampire Women, which you might remember from an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.

Fun fact: The MST3K episode in question was the season 6 finale and Frank Conniff's final appearance as a series regular. Here's the entire film on YouTube: Santo was also the subject of comic books and cartoons. His comic book series ran for 35 years and was only rivalled in popularity by the Mexican adventure book Kaliman. This is absolutely him wrestling some mummies in a panel of Jose G. Cruz's Santo: A week before his death in 1984, Santo took off his mask for the first and only time on Mexican television to say goodbye to his fans. He'd retired from wrestling in 1982. Santo was buried wearing his mask. His legacy is everlasting. His son currently wrestles under the name El Hijo del Santo, and has become a bit of a legend himself. Recently, one of his granchildren took up the name El Nieto del Santo (yes, that's "Santo's Grandson!") in the ring. Que viva El Santo! BLUE DEMON Years Active: 1948 - 1989 Santo's biggest rival was undoubtedly Blue Demon, who defeated him in several well-publicized matches in the 50s.

This isn't the only thing that makes him one of the other great legends of lucha libre, but it certainly helped. Time and time again, fans of the sport have imagined the What If? scenario of a Blue Demon and Santo battle for the mask. It would've been epic, but it would've also cut one of their careers short and robbed them of the fame they so well deserved. Still, what if? You might be surprised to know that Blue Demon started his career as a rudo (a bad guy). It wasn't until 1952 when he faced off against Santo in a tag team match that he decided to change teams. Blue Demon's partner in the match, Black Shadow, was unmasked by Santo. Perhaps this caused Blue Demon to see the light... Demon was also a film star, starring in many films alongside his greatest rival. They went on adventures to Atlantis, fought monsters, and even took a trip to "The World of the Dead" together. Charming. But really, what I want to talk to you about is their 1972 film Santo and Blue Demon vs Dracula and the Wolfman. Actually, no. I'll just show you.

Here's a clip of Santo and Blue Demon fighting a bunch of wolf men: You can find the rest of the film on YouTube, as well. A year later, the duo faced off against Dr. Frankenstein and his minions. We're talking about an A-list lineup of horror B-movies. I suggest you spike the punch and watch these movies at the next Halloween party. (Drink responsibly.) In the ring, Blue Demon was as much a champ as Santo. Demon won the EMLL (now CMLL) National Welterweight Championship on several occasions, and even won the NWA Welterweight Championship twice, defeating Santo one of those times. The National Wrestling Alliance, of course, is one of the largest leagues of independent wrestling promotions in the world. Bravo! In later years, Blue Demon developed a rivalry against fellow masked wrestling legend Rayo de Jalisco ("The Lightning from Jalisco"), who was also in a couple of wrestling pictures with Demon. Rayo and Demon faced off in a deadly mask vs. mask match in 1988, the year Demon retired. You can watch the match below (sorry for the terrible audio)... Blue Demon retired from the ring at age 67.

He teamed up with his adopted son, Blue Demon Jr., in his final match as a professional wrestler. He passed away in 2000 after his morning workout at The Blue Demon Wrestling Academy, where he taught younger generations lucha libre. Blue Demon never revealed his identity and was buried wearing his mask. Blue Demon Jr. has continued to honor his father's memory and mask in the ring. Wrestling as a heavyweight, he's the first Mexican and second masked wrestler to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. And you can watch him on Lucha Underground every Wednesday night! MIL MASCARAS Years Active: 1968 - Present Ah, we get to Mil Mascaras ("The Man of a Thousand Masks") at last, who is probably the most controversial wrestler on this list. Why? Well, many wrestlers have claimed that Mil Mascaras could take you on an ego trip to the moon. Many superstars such as Mick Foley and Chris Jericho have criticized Mascaras' unwillingness to sell moves in matches. But I'm not going to sit here and talk smack about a lucha legend.

Mil Mascaras was so superior in size to a lot of his heavyweight contemporaries in Mexico that it allowed him to wrestle in big American wrestling promotions such as the WWF and WCW. Mascaras also helped develop the high-flying style of lucha libre we see today. While a lot of lucha at the time was made up of various holds, Mascaras had his eye on the top rope. This made him a one-of-a-kind superstar in Mexico. They even put him on postage stamps later in his career. Although he faced criticism from other wrestlers, Mil Mascaras' time in the big American wrestling promotions proved a successful one. He was the first masked wrestler allowed to perform in Madison Square Garden, which had a ban on masked wrestlers due to a NYC law that didn't allow people to wear masks back in the 70s. His opponent, The Spoiler, who also wore a mask, had to take off his mask to perform. Mascaras feuded with Billy Graham for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship. And also had a memorable match against Cactus Jask at WCW's Clash of the Champions X: Texas Shootout in 1990.

Here's the video: Yeah, he kicked Mick Foley's butt. In 1997, Mil Mascaras performed in his first American pay-per-view, that year's edition of the WWF Royal Rumble, where he eliminated himself by jumping off the top rope and out of the ring. Cuz fuck it, I guess. Mil Mascaras was later honored by the WWE Hall of Fame in 2012. As you can see above, he looks good in a tux. Okay, now we get to my favorite part of his career. Like the two other men on this list, Mil Mascaras was also a film star. He's starred in 19 wrestling films so far and counting. His first film was appropriately titled Mil Mascaras (1966) in which he portrays a superhero version of himself. Which is fitting when you get to THE CHAMPIONS OF JUSTICE! If lucha libre ever had its very own Justice League/Avengers troop of masked wrestlers, The Champions of Justice (1970) was it.

Portraying a powerful wrestling superhero team, Mil Mascaras teamed up with Blue Demon, Tinieblas, El Medico Asesino, and La Sombra Vengadora to fight crime, monsters, evil scientists, evil dwarves, and...wrestlers. For the next few years, Mil Mascaras joined fellow wrestlers in several epic wrestling team-up films such as Macabre Legends of the Colony (1973), The Mummies of San Angel (1973), and Mystery in Bermuda (1977). The same year as the first Champions of Justice film, Mil Mascaras starred alongside El Santo and Blue Demon for the very first time in The Mummies of Guanajuato. Here's the entire film: The biggest crime is that they never made a Champions of Justice comic book or some kind of team-up event for the stands. Oh well. What if... Mil Mascaras continues to wrestle today and to perform in films. He's 72 years old and still flying off shit. Good for him.

I'll leave you with this fantastic match between Mil Mascaras and Billy Graham for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship: John Saavedra has met a couple of luchadores. They're nice people.

Question: Lucha Libre is a popular form of wrestling, in which country did it originate?
Answer: Mexico